A Report into the activities of Explorator-Magos Vaal Kryzak

[Kaled]

+++ Report Reference: ADM-8161-43-P +++
+++ Subject Name: Kryzak, Vaal +++
+++ Subject Rank: Magos-Explorator, Adeptus Mechanicus +++
+++ Author: Adept Landeman +++

"The artefact itself is tainted by virtue of it being made by alien hands, but, although perverted by alien minds, the knowledge used in its manufacture is straight from the Omnissiah.  It is this pure knowledge that I seek to further the Quest on which we are all engaged."

<Vaal Kryzak: Extract from vox surveillance file ADM-9456-43-A>

My lord,

Here follows a summary of my report on the life and activities of the Adeptus Mechanicus Explorator Vaal Kryzak <Pict capture>.  As I am sure you appreciate, our limited access to the Adeptus Mechanicus cogitator network means it is difficult to assemble anything approaching a complete biographical record.  Should you require further detail, I humbly suggest that you use your authority to 'persuade' the Mechanicus to grant us access to their databanks.

Details of Kryzak's early life and career are unknown for the reasons given above, however he first came to the notice of the Inquisition when, as a member of Magos Kaydanov's expedition to the LeMay Cluster, he strayed into space controlled by the Gallino Cabal.  Back then he was a mere Tech-Acolyte, apprenticed to Kaydanov, and as such, little attention was paid to him in the ensuing investigation.  The full transcript of the interrogation is available in [1].

Kryzak is now one of the foremost Explorators operating from the Forge World of Morrell-Noon.  His quest to uncover the secrets of the Black Monoliths of Reputus III [2] has entered into legend, and his discovery of the Ferrox-Sung STC data-fragment [3] further enhanced his reputation.  Those who have met him describe him as ruthless and ambitious, and he has been implicated in several mysterious 'accidents' that afflicted his rivals [4].  Kryzak has well known pro-xenos leanings in his interpretation of the Eighth Universal Law*, and it is this fact, more than anything, that has caused him to come under scrutiny from the Inquisition.

The Fabricator-General of Morrell-Noon shares Kryzak's interpretation of the Xenos Testamenta, and I hypothesise that this (along with the aforementioned 'accidents') has contributed to Kryzak's rapid advancement to the rank of Magos, and to his being granted command of an Explorator fleet.  While his interest in alien technology is seen as distasteful by many of his peers, it appears he has not broken any laws of the Mechanicum - thus, although he has clashed with other members of the Mechanicum on occasion, the fact that he has friends at the highest levels of power mean it is difficult (and dangerous) for his rivals to openly move against him.

Furthermore, as a member of the Mechanicus, Kryzak is not beholden to the Dictates Imperialis.  Unless he openly commits some extreme violation of Imperial Law it would be extremely difficult for the Arbites to prosecute him for trading xeno-tech.  Thus, if it is deemed that Kryzak's activities are a danger to the Imperium, it falls to the Inquisition to arrest him.  Even then, to do so without sufficient cause brings the risk of damaging our always delicate relations with the Mechanicus.

+++ Known Affliliations +++

As well as numerous contacts in the many Cult-Colleges of the Mechanicum, Kryzak has contacts in the Cult of Osiron, the Organicists, the Sect of Sollex, Manus Olympus, the Scarion Well, the Khamrians and other, less well known factions [5].  In addition, he is known to be associated with the Magos-Militant, but we have been unable to acertain whether he is in fact be a member of that order.

+++ Military Capabilities +++

While the exact capabilities and make-up of Kryzak's Explorator fleet is unknown; we have been able to identify his flagship as the Mars-class Battlecruiser 'Glory of the Omnissiah'.  It is accompanied by a Tyrant-class Cruiser (tentatively identified as the 'Olympus') and an unknown Lunar-class Cruiser.  As of this date, no other capital ships have been sighted in the fleet.  The fleet is accompanied by two squadrons of escorts, three troop transports and numerous support vessels.  As is common with vessels operated by the Mechanicus, it is believed that these ships have capabilities far in advance of similar class vessels operated by the Imperial Navy.  For example, advanced transporter technology fitted to the Glory of the Omnissiah appears to be the method by which Kryzak escaped Inquisitorial custody after being captured by Inquisitor Valka [6].

In addition to his fleet, Kryzak has been granted executive command of a formidable array of ground forces.  Again, the exact details of these are unknown, but it is known that he commands a legion-sized force of Skitarii infantry, combat-servitors (including Praetorians), a substantial number of armoured assets, and rumours persist that his expedition is accompanied by a cohort of Knights.

Needless to say, to move against Kryzak militarily would be folly of the highest order, however I have detailed a number of alternate strategies by which we might deal with him (see Addendum 2).  Kryzak is known to ocasionally take personal command  of some missions, deploying by Arvus Lighter and accompanied by just a small team of followers, and I believe that this represents the best chance of success should you decide to move against him.

+++ Recent Activities +++

Details of Kryzak's activities are sketchy at best, but from what our agents have been able to gather, he is currently engaged in research to develop new weapons systems initially for use by the Skitarii legions, but which could also be deployed to the Imperial Guard in future once they have been properly tested and approved.

It is rumoured that during his research he has retro-engineered and adapted alien technology and fitted it to servitors in order to both assess its capabilities and extract the knowledge used in its manufacture (what he describes as 'pure knowledge granted to the faithful by the Omnissiah, but which has been subverted and twisted by alien minds').  It is my recommendation that this research be allowed to under close supervision - should he succeed, such technology (once properly blessed and sanctified) could be of great help in our continuing crusade to expand His glorious realm.

I remain, as ever, your most faithful servant.

Landeman



* The Eighth Universal Law: The alien mechanism is a perversion of the true path.


+++ References +++

[1] - Proceedings of the Gallino Cabal, 5392543.M40 (Reference: CGA-43-2343-5a)
[2] - Unlocking the Black Monoliths of Reputus III (Report ID: 67212-EXR-2-e)
[3] - STC Printout 767828-a-21 (Ferrox-Sung) - <CLASSIFIED>
[4] - Skitarii-Provost Investigations 41-1534-07, 41-5376-11 & 41-6788-32
[5] - A Treatise on the Factions of the Cult Mechanicus, Landeman, (IRSN: 7678-2331-4495)
[6] - Investigation 763-222-1 (Incomplete): Subject: Kryzak, Vaal


+++ Addendum 1: Summary of Notable Associates +++

Orla Riall, Tech-Priestess
<Pict capture>

Orla Riall is a rising star within the Mechanicum, seconded to Kryzak's expedition to further her career.  We know little of her background prior to her secondment, but it is assumed that she originates from Sollex (as evidenced by her energy blade which is of a type manufactured exclusively by the Sect of Sollex).  Riall displays a preternatural skill with a blade (suggesting the use of one or more electro-grafts) making her an extremely dangerous opponent.

Saphentis, Skitarii Centurion
<Pict capture>

Saphentis is the senior officer commanding the military forces attached to Kryzak's Explorator fleet.  As well as being fiercely loyal to Kryzak, he is a very capable leader and a formidable warrior in his own right.  He has numerous bionic enhancements, and it is believed he has been inducted into some of the lower mysteries of the machine.

Zurek Nabokov, Calculus-Logi
<Pict capture>

Nabokov is Kryzak's chief savant and advisor, and should an attempt be made to bring Kryzak to trial, access to Nabokov's memory store would be invaluable.  Nabokov's enhanced brain makes him an excellent marksman, capable of calculating trajectories and making remarkable shots.  He is often seen carrying a hunting rifle, which appears to have been heavily customised.

Alaia Katenta, Tech-Acolyte
<Pict capture>

From the limited information available, it appears that Katenta has been assigned to Kryzak's expedition as an apprentice Tech-Priest and currently functions as his famulous.  Despite not yet being ordained in the priesthood proper, she appears to have a number of augmentations uncommon for one of her rank; most notably a pair of mechadendrites and a multi-function eye-piece.  We believe these enhancements were fitted by Kryzak to allow her to better fulfil her designated role in his retinue.

Vir Dmitrich, Skitarii-Provost
<Pict capture>

Dmitrich is known to us through records of several joint investigations he has performed alongside members of the Arbites based on Tigguo Cobauc.  Like all children born on the forge world of Morrell-Noon, Vir Dmitrich was profiled at an early age and assigned to be trained within the ranks of the Skitarii-Provosts.  Lately he has been seconded to Kryzak's expedition where he appears to be responsible for investigating and prosecuting any hereteks or other instances of tech-heresy encountered by the expedition.

Sokol Lazarus, Cybernetic Guard
<Pict capture>

Lazarus is a member of Kryzak's personal bodyguard.  He appears to have undergone Emotional Repressive Surgery, rendering him incapable of emotion and thus immune to fear.  Lazarus has been injured many times while protecting his master, and much of his body has been replaced with bionics.

Additional: Recent reports suggest that Lazarus has been fitted with either recovered Tau artefacts, or with technology based on knowledge gleaned from examination of such artefacts.  Suggest detaining Lazarus to ascertain the origin of the implants.

Johann-4251, Praetorian Servitor
<Pict capture>

Although Kryzak's force contains a number of Praetorian-class servitors, recently he is most commonly accompanied by one designated 'Johann-4251' - a heavily armed gun-servitor whose only organic component seems to be a head suspended in amniotic fluid.  Recent reports suggest the servitor has been destroyed and rebuilt following clashes with Inquisitorial forces.

'The Pariah', Servitor-Experiment
<Pict capture>

The origins of the being known only as 'The Pariah' are unknown.  He appears to have been implanted with technology of Necrontyr origin; however the fact that such technology 'phases-out' when the foul aliens are defeated means it is more probable that the implants are human in origin, and merely mimic the outward appearance of Necrontyr technology.  Although the name of this servitor echoes the designation of a class of Necron warrior, the feelings of revulsion it generates suggest that the poor unfortunate being is, or was, a psychic blank.

Test Subject 728, Servitor-Experiment
<Pict capture>

Details of Kryzak's work with the Tyranid construct known as a 'Deathspitter' were delivered to the Ordo Xenos fortress on Belekrav III and have been widely distributed within its members.  According to his report, the first seventeen (17) subjects were overwhelmed by the alien biology of the device, however the cocktail of chemicals used to subdue the Deathspitter have allowed Test Subject 728 to resist its influence.  Work is apparently ongoing to discover whether these chemicals can be adapted to use as a weapon against the Tyranid menace.  For more details, see file ID: 75832-DSR-8-a.

Servo-Scarab
<Pict capture - UNAVAILABLE>

The servo-scarab is a small drone shaped to mimic the 'Scarab' drones used by the Necrons.  Although armed, it is believed that its primary purpose is reconaissance.  As with the technology used to create 'The Pariah', we have deduced that it's mechanism must be human rather than Necron in origin.


+++ Addendum 2:  +++
ENCRYPTED TEXT: ENTER ENCRYPTION KEY TO PROCEED...


+++ Addendum 3: Personel Assessments +++
DATA TO FOLLOW...

+++ File Ends +++

For a change, I thought I'd post some background material on one of my warbands, however what I really want feedback on is my proposed rule to represent the capabilities of a Calculus-Logi;

Calculus-Logi - otherwise known as a Lex-mechanic, this human computer is capable of performing complex calculations and extrapolating from incomplete data.  If called upon to make a Sagacity test, he may spend actions concentrating beforehand as he brings his considerable powers of logic and deduction to bear on the problem, gaining a +10% bonus to the Sg test for each action.  In addition, his ability to calculate trajectories gives him an additional +10% To Hit bonus for each aim action (for a total of 30%).

The idea is that the ability be given to a character with a BS of an 'average' citizen, say around 30 - that way he'd be poor at making a snap shot, but if he takes the time to aim he can calculate trajectories and fire extremely accurately.  The same goes for his Sg - it should be pretty 'average', maybe around 50-60 but given chance to ponder a problem he can access his databanks and deduce a solution.

[Vladimir]

loving that background so far...
Stats soon, yes?

[Kaled]

Stats soon, yes?

No, sorry.  Skill and equipment lists are a possibility, but I see no reason to tell people things they don't need to know.  For example, if you want to find out how succeptable my characters are to psychic attack then you'll have to try using some powers on them and see if they work.

[MarcoSkoll]

Skill and equipment lists are a possibility, but I see no reason to tell people things they don't need to know.

I'm working on that principle for the IGT.

While I might normally post up my characters, I'm keeping Lyra, Kai and Renatus under wraps, because while most people here get the differences between player and character knowledge, sometimes people have their characters act too omnisciently without really thinking.

Really, at the start of the game, it doesn't hurt if the player doesn't know more than they can see on the model.

[Inquisitor Cade]

Great stuff, I eagerly await 'in the field' posts about these guys.

I really like the Calculus Logi rules. Though in practice the experiance (given that he 'often' carries a favoured weapon) of shooting, and he'd 'get the hang' of the trajectory predictions, so I'd suggest his Bs would be a little higher than the average citizen.

[Aidan]

Very good background work and well presented. Kryzak sure has a hell of a lot of power (what with a small fleet and army), considering he's sitting on the fuzziest edge of Adeptus Mechanicus doctrine, but with a friend in the Fabricator General of a forge world, I suppose its been explained. I also like the fact that you specifically pointed out that he 'occaisionally takes personal command of missions' despite his obvious resources, otherwise it would be hard to justify him putting himself in harm's way in an Inquisitor campaign!

The Calculus-Logi rule seems like a great idea for a highly specialised character. Definitely an alternative to the standard 'wise old guy' (or old wiseguy) savants.

It will be interesting to see how these guys fare in the field; please post, for the benefit of those of us who'll never get a chance to face them ourselves... 

-Aidan.

[Adlan]

Love the background, the little touches are what make it, like the rebuilding of johann.

As for the Calculus Logi rules though, seems good for the SG stuff, but a little action heavy for shooting. To really gain a major benefit, he'd have to spend 5 actions on one shot (two concentrating, two aiming, one shooting) and he'd be just as well off if he spent 4 actions aiming.

Oh, sorry still drunk, reread the rules. He just as a flat extra 10% aim bonus, makes sense.

[Kaled]

I wanted him to at least start off at the top - at the minute he has power, resources, patronage at the highest levels; but that could easily change if the Inquisition really decides to go after him or the Fabricator-General dies or is removed from power. Only time will tell whether I actually get around to telling that story arc; it's entirely possible I'll decide to go down a different route.

[Vladimir]

"Stats soon, yes?"
No, sorry.  Skill and equipment lists are a possibility, but I see no reason to tell people things they don't need to know.  For example, if you want to find out how succeptable my characters are to psychic attack then you'll have to try using some powers on them and see if they work.

Call me stupid here, but shouldn't this thread be in the background bit, then?

[Inquisitor Cade]

Perhaps technically, but by convension we've always done specific characters for use in game in this forum and used the background forums for more general things.

[Kaled]

As Cade says, this is the place for characters.  Originally I was going to post some parts of the character profiles - and I may still do after the IGT, but for now it' background and special rules only.  Which reminds me, I meant to include the energy blade rules in the thread...

I've used them on a couple of occasions, and although potent, I'd say a regular power sword is a much better weapon - the limited fuel, chace of damage to the wielder and no strength bonus mean the energy blade is a lot less good than it's profile suggests.

+++

Sollex-Aegis Energy Blade

A product of information obtained from the Aegis Data Fragment and utilising the properties of the Sollex focusing crystals, this is one of the rarest type of weapons in the Imperium - a power blade of coherent high-energy plasma. Devastatingly powerful, only a few Sollex-Aegis Energy Blades are held by individuals outside the Mechanicus, and their secrets little understood even by their makers in the mysterious Tech-Priest sect of Sollex. Although potent beyond even most power weapons, they can also prove treacherous to the unwary as the energy blade can fluctuate, laser containment fail, or the insubstantial blade slip unexpectedly. [From The Inquisitor's Handbook p.135]

Reach=3 Damage=3D10+4 Parry penalty=-10%

- Assuming the character has the hilt in their hand, activating or deactivating the energy blade is a free action that can be combined with other actions as normal.
- If an energy blade is parried, or successfully makes a parry, there is a 75% chance that the opponent's weapon is destroyed - even power, shock and force weapons are vulnerable to this effect. The energy blade itself cannot be destroyed by power weapons.
- While the energy blade does have a degree of density and mass, physical force applied to the swing contributes nothing to the weapons effect, and so no additional damage is done if the character's Strength is over 50.
- An unmodified roll of 96-100 when attempting to hit or parry means the insubstantial blade has slipped unexpectedly and the wielder suffers a hit from the energy blade to a random location.
- The energy blade consumes cannister fuel, with cannisters usually being worn on the belt and fed by a cable to the hilt. A cannister is good for 5 turns of operation (turns where the blade is active for at least half of the characters successful actions). Changing the cannister takes two actions.
- Due to the harsh actinic light and furnace-blast roar that the blade produces, the wielder cannot attempt to be stealthy while it is switched on. The GM should impose suitable modifiers to any awareness tests made to detect the character while the blade is activated.
- Deflect Shot can be used with an energy blade, however only shots from energy weapons can be rebounded back at the firer; solid rounds are vaporised by the plasma blade.

[DapperAnarchist]

So its... a cross between a lightsaber and a super-energy-blowtorch? For modelling, could I suggest that the handle have, coming off at the top, little sort of "balancer" objects? Like on the Chaos Terminator Lord's power fist.

This (and I know its made by the Dark Heresy writers, but I still want to say this) is a good example of porting - yes, its recognisably a lightsaber, but its not the perfect technology of Star Wars, and those who use them are unlikely to be Jedi-like. Perhaps a bit Sith-y....

[Kaled]

For modelling, could I suggest that the handle have, coming off at the top, little sort of "balancer" objects? Like on the Chaos Terminator Lord's power fist.

Well, the model is made already, but I'm curious - have you got a picture, I'm not that familiar with the Chaos terminator range and am not certain which bits you're referring to.

This (and I know its made by the Dark Heresy writers, but I still want to say this) is a good example of porting - yes, its recognisably a lightsaber, but its not the perfect technology of Star Wars, and those who use them are unlikely to be Jedi-like. Perhaps a bit Sith-y....

I agree (which is probably why I decided to make a character with one) - the familiar lightsaber have been nicely converted to fit the 40k universe.  It's no longer an elegant weapon for a more civilized age, but is a barely stable and extremely dangerous weapon suitable for a grimdark future dystopia.

[DapperAnarchist]

Its really simple looking - the bottom of the fist has a little cylinder coming out, attached by a narrower cylinder. Nothing complex, but it looks cool... I'm using that fist with the fingers removed for a bionic arm. It may be the Chainfist either, not sure...

[Inquisitor Cade]

I still don't really buy that defect shot is humanly possible, and combining it with the energy sword is a bit cheesy. My other worry is that even thou 96-00 sounds unlikely, in practice the weilders of these weapons hit themselves every 20 swings, and given the terrorfying power of the weapon, it's a wonder any of them survive any of their fights. I think that rolling on the plasma pistol overheat table would be a better malfunction.